Apple Accused Of Demanding Newsday Drop Its iPad App Ad

from the uh,-why? dept

Mon, Sep 20th 2010 6:31am — Mike Masnick

This one's just bizarre, but the story is making the rounds that Apple threatened to takedown Newsday's apps if Newsday didn't kill the following commercial that's been making the rounds:

The commercial is marginally funny, but it makes no sense why Apple would get so upset about it. Apparently, the reason given so far is that the company doesn't like that the glass is shown shattering into large jagged pieces -- but it's not like that's going to cause people to go try to recreate the situation in the commercial. And, if the rumor is true, threatening to remove Newday's apps from the app store is just petty (which, it should be admitted, Apple seems to have no problem with). Of course, the end result of all this -- yet again -- is that more and more people are viewing the ad. And even I don't think Apple is so crafty as to issue the takedown just to get the ad more attention.

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Filed Under: ads, apps, ipad
Companies: apple, newsday

40 Comments

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chris (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 6:44am

no sense of humor?
there's an app for that. oh wait...
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R. Miles (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 6:52am

Apple + "This one's just bizarre" = only when Apple does something right.
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Chronno S. Trigger (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:09am

OK, I laughed
Yeah, the Newsday ad isn't accurate. The screen wouldn't shatter like that, it's probably laminated, but did Apple think that someone would smash a real iPad for a commercial? Would they have felt better if Newsday did?
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- Hulser (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:24am
  
  Re: OK, I laughed
  did Apple think that someone would smash a real iPad for a commercial?
  
  I think the (overblown) concern from Apple's perspective isn't that someone would intentionally try to recreate what's in the commercial, but the implication that if you accidentally dropped the iPad, the glass face would shatter into several pieces.
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  - iPad Fire, 20 Sep 2010 @ 8:29am
    
    Re: Re: OK, I laughed
    When I dropped my iPad, onto a carpeted floor, the glass cracked clear through. No lamination. My crack was just in the corner, but it was a nice curving break with an exposed sharp edge.
    
    I have no difficulty whatsoever in picturing the iPad breaking glass in exactly the manner depicted.
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- Steven (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:28am
  
  Re: OK, I laughed
  I think this is a better showing of what would happen (before it goes in the blender). Of course I don't know why they didn't just use a real iPad.
  
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAl28d6tbko&NR=1
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Anonymous Coward, 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:15am

I guess after the antenna gate Jobs got a little squeamish.
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Kaze (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:28am

That's funny
I can see where Apple has a concern (I've seen a number of broken iPhones and iPod Touches that were dropped). Apple likes to think that their stuff isn't breakable, though that is not the case.

All in all, I think that the ad is quite amusing, and only an idiot would try to do what was portrayed.
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- ElSteevo (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:51am
  
  Re: That's funny
  Kaze said:
  "All in all, I think that the ad is quite amusing, and only an idiot would try to do what was portrayed"
  The ad is accurate, idiots do read Newsday.
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  - Kaze (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:55am
    
    Re: Re: That's funny
    Well, I wasn't going to comment on their clients, of whom I know none personally.
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- interval (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 8:01am
  
  Re: That's funny
  I think the ad is rather stupid, but that still doesn't explain why it would make Apple look stupid, or be any kind of negative reflection at all... "Don't make a commercial for your app that we don't like or we'll pull your app." I mean, what is that???
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- JEDIDIAH, 20 Sep 2010 @ 10:17am
  
  Re: That's funny
  I think the real problem is that this would even come up at all. You are a 3rd party provider more or less minding your own business and then suddenly you do something that the platform tyrant dislikes. Then BOOM: you are suddenly blackballed and unable to sell your product any more.
  
  Even if the story isn't true, it still exposes a big problem with "walled garden" products.
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ChurchHatesTucker (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:32am

What?
"And even I don't think Apple is so crafty as to issue the takedown just to get the ad more attention."

It doesn't seem like their style, but they are certainly crafty enough to pull that sort of thing off if they chose.
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Anonymous Coward, 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:48am

"And, IF the rumor is true, threatening to remove..." is what I think you meant.
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- Mike Masnick (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 10:37am
  
  Re:
  "And, IF the rumor is true, threatening to remove..." is what I think you meant.
  
  Oops. Yes. Fixed.
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Michael, 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:50am

Cruel
I think the cruelty of smashing a poor insect is disturbing. The violence on TV these days is astounding.
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- davebarnes (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:55am
  
  Right on!
  Where is PETA on this?
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interval (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:59am

Hey Apple!
Controlling much?
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- gnomehole (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 8:08am
  
  Re: Hey Apple!
  Its a good thing most of you don't run your own company because you have no concept of how a large company runs and what it takes to make money.
  
  Apple has every right to ask this to be pulled. The glass breaking is not realistic and when I showed this to a few people that was the one thing they commented on. In fact at our company we're looking at the durability of the devices for large scale rollout and one of the VPs commented on this ad.
  
  You don't think it matters? THink again.. or at least think.
  
  Apple gets a bad rap when people don't use their brains and think before they post this stuff.
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  - Alatar, 20 Sep 2010 @ 8:14am
    
    Re: Re: Hey Apple!
    "Apple has every right to ask this to be pulled. The glass breaking is not realistic and when I showed this to a few people that was the one thing they commented on."
    
    Oh yeah, I'm sure an ad that show that, "guess what, if you smash an Ipad on a table, it will break", is really a bad thing for Apple and a blatant lie.
    The ad is funny and would bring customers in, of course people understand that smashing it is not a wise thing.
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    - Money Mike (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 8:31am
      
      Re: Re: Re: Hey Apple!
      "...of course people understand that smashing it is not a wise thing."
      
      You're giving way too much credit to people.
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  - Anonymous Coward, 20 Sep 2010 @ 8:17am
    
    Re: Re: Hey Apple!
    "Apple has every right to ask this to be pulled."
    
    No, Apple has no right to control the property of others. Copy"right" is a misnomer, it's really a privilege.
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  - Common Sense, 20 Sep 2010 @ 8:29am
    
    Re: Re: Hey Apple!
    It's not the people who post this stuff or make those commercials that are the problem. It's the morons like your VP who think a commercial NOT for an iPad can be used to determine any real conclusions for the iPad. Basically, it's the people who don't use their brains before they RESPOND, that give Apple a bad rap.
    
    And that's without getting into the fact that if you were concerned about the durability of a device that you were thinking of rolling out large scale, and you didn't do some sort of test like that to confirm the actual durability, you're a moron of a different level. Think harder.
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  - ComputerAddict (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 9:18am
    
    Re: Re: Hey Apple!
    Your right, Apple has the right to ASK... but thats it.. Maybe instead of trying to blackmail Newsday (which is probably illegal) It should take the CEO of Newsday out for a nice Italian dinner, a nice bottle of wine, and then get down on their knees and Suck his.... I mean.. beg newsday not to air this.
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  - Anonymous Coward, 20 Sep 2010 @ 9:58am
    
    Apple Fanboy
    I knew you people would show up, eventually.
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  - btrussell (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 5:26pm
    
    Re: Re: Hey Apple!
    "Apple has every right to ask this to be pulled. The glass breaking is not realistic and when I showed this to a few people that was the one thing they commented on. In fact at our company we're looking at the durability of the devices for large scale rollout and one of the VPs commented on this ad."
    
    So we can then assume that all other commercials and everything else on TV is realistic?
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    - Anonymous Coward, 20 Sep 2010 @ 7:17pm
      
      Re: Re: Re: Hey Apple!
      Filmed on a close course and professional idiot operating the iPod.
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Money Mike (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 8:18am

Not Surprised by Apple's Overreaction
This is so funny to me because when I saw this commercial last week, the first thing I thought of was "oh no, I don't think Apple's going to like that." It has nothing to do with worries about copycats, but just the visual of the iPad shattering like that gives an impression of it being fragile.

Don't get me wrong - I'm not saying I agree with them, but given their history of trying so hard to portray a specific image and how aggressive they are at keeping everything so tightly locked down, this doesn't surprise me in the least. I'm pretty sure they only want people to think that their products are amazingly simple to use, they "just work," and they don't have any of the typical computer problems.

I'm sure they don't want people thinking the iPad smashes into pieces when it's dropped - regardless of whether or not we all know that's exactly what would happen. Even if the ad showed the screen cracking or breaking realistically (which would detract from the humor), I think Apple would still have problems with it.
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JoeNYC, 20 Sep 2010 @ 9:28am

Big Brother Apple
And they wonder why people jailbreak their devices???
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martyburns (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 9:42am

Hypocrites..
I seem to remember Apple themselves running adverts that didn't depict the real performance of the iPhone..
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Chart, 20 Sep 2010 @ 10:32am

ROFL that was funny. Oh Apple needs to get a sinse of hummor
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TDR, 20 Sep 2010 @ 10:44am

Yet another reason not to get the iBad...
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Jharmon (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 10:51am

Seriously?
Just another cheezy commercial designed for some degree of shock value, not reality. Apple has come up with some of the greatest ads of our time, but sometimes I think they either experiment with a new ad consultant, or the current one has an off day...
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mike allen (profile), 20 Sep 2010 @ 11:40am

i love the ad funny pity it wont work so well n radio but il give it a try.
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Anonymous Coward, 20 Sep 2010 @ 11:47am

So iPads cause flies...
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Anonymous Coward, 20 Sep 2010 @ 3:12pm

Because it shows just how poor quality the ipad (and by extension all apple products) really are.

Cue angry comments from people with more money than brains bashing me for hating inferior products.
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James Smith, 21 Sep 2010 @ 7:51am

Yep, Apple is that sneaky
Of course they are that crafty, but maybe they are shooting themselves in the foot with some of this stuff?
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LS, 22 Sep 2010 @ 1:37am

Ironically, the youtube video has now been pulled also.
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Anonymous Coward, 27 Sep 2010 @ 3:42am

Video link does not work. Please correct the link in your article.
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Steve Davidson, 11 Jul 2011 @ 9:49am

Smashing the Ipad
What made Apple think that someone would smash a real iPad for a commercial for exposure?

There is no doubt that the concern from Apple's perspective is that if you dropped the ipad, the glass face would shatter thus making people think twice before buying one....they should drop one off a desk onto carpet or tile to show folks the outcome. My experience is it may be better than shown....
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